Suspicious package in downtown Halifax was 'hoax improvised explosive device,' police say
Police have cleared a man they thought was a suspect
Halifax police no longer consider a man whose image they shared on Wednesday to be a suspect in relation to the "hoax improvised explosive device" found outside city hall.
In a news release Thursday, police said they had identified and interviewed the man who was in a photo they released to the public the previous day in connection with their investigation into the discovery of a suspicious package in the Grand Parade.
"While the man had encountered the package, police no longer believe he is a suspect," the release said.
On Wednesday, police officers determined the package found in the parade square outside Halifax city hall was not a threat to the public.
"However, it was designed to come across as threatening," said police spokesperson Const. Martin Cromwell.
Police responded at around 9:50 a.m. AT to a phone call reporting the package. The streets surrounding Grand Parade were closed to vehicles and pedestrians for just over an hour.
Although he did not have statistics about these types of incidents, Cromwell said they are not common.
When a report of a suspicious package is received, he said police approach the situation "with the protocol of investigating it as [if] it may be … a threat."
